DISCLAIMER: I did not invent these steps. I merely followed the instructions at the official Wiki guide of Maemo 5 located here: http://wiki.maemo.org/Updating_the_firmware. However, there are no pictures or illustrations in this wiki so I think there will be new users who may get confused, especially if they are new to Linux. So I decided to post the instructions that I followed but this time it has screenshots to help you better.

PREPARATION:
Download the Flasher first: http://tablets-dev.nokia.com/maemo-d...-downloads.php. If you're using a Debian-based Linux distro (such as Ubuntu), download the one with the .deb extension. For all other Linux distros that are not Debian-based (such as Fedora) you need to download the one with the .tar.gz extension. If you're using Windows, download the .exe file.





Download the firmware for your device: http://tablets-dev.nokia.com/nokia_N900.php. You need to download 2 files:

1. Firmware for the Operating System
2. Firmware for the eMMC (32GB internal storage/memory card)







Install the Flasher by opening Terminal (it's like the Command Prompt in Microsoft Windows) and typing the following, or copy-paste it. You will replace <flasher-package-name> with the actual file name of the Flasher application.

For Debian-based Linux OS (like Ubuntu) wher e you downloaded the .deb file:

If you're using a 64-bit system for Linux, type this:

For non Debian-based Linux OS (like Fedora)where you downloaded the .tar.gz file, extract the contents of the .tar.gz file into your desired folder/directory.

For Windows: the installer is in the form of an .exe file. Just run the file by double-clicking or right-click with the mouse and choose "Open".

NEXT: Actual steps for flashing the Nokia N900